Assaults up over the past year

The Government needs to take a good look at the latest statistics out today from the Statistics Department that shows there were 3,000 more assaults in 2015-16 than the previous year, says Labour’s Police spokesperson Stuart Nash.

“That is a 6 per cent rise in just 12 months. Serious assaults resulting in injury are up by 4 per cent.

“All this shows that Judith Collins is utterly wrong when she claims crime is falling.

“These big hikes in violent crime are putting a huge stress on a police force who have been told there will be no staffing increases until 2020

“Robbery is up by 12 per cent and burglary is up by 14 per cent. These new statistics make grim reading. They show a need for a return to traditional and community policing.

“It’s time the Minister stood up for our hard working police officers. There must be enough police officers to keep our communities safe,” says Stuart Nash.